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The Arizona Constitution is the governing document and framework for the State of Arizona. The current constitution is the first and only adopted by the state of Arizona.

History

The Arizona Territory was authorized to hold a constitutional convention in 1910 to at which the constitution was drafted and submitted to Congress. The original constitution was approved by Congress, however subsequently vetoed by President William H. Taft on his objections concerning the recalling of judges. The constitution was amended by the constitutional convention removing the provision about judicial recall and resubmitted upon which President Taft approved Arizona's statehood as the 48th U.S. state on February 14, 1912.[1]

Article 4 establishes the legislature and the people through initiative as legislative authority for the state and outlines the qualifications for state House of Representatives and Senate and the division of districts (30 districts to elect 1 senator and 2 representatives).

Article 5 outlines the qualifications for Governor and other Executive branch officials and to their duties.

Article 6 frames the court system including the Supreme Court and superior court and qualifications for judges.

Article 6.1 creates a Commission on Judicial Conduct to oversee the judicial system.

Article 17 declares the common law riparian system of water rights void and reconfirms preexisting appropriated water rights.

Article 18, as well as Article 25, concerns labor, regulating child labor, defining a work day to be 8 hours and declaring Arizona a right to work state.

Article 19 creates the office of State Mine inspector and the inspection of mines operating in the state.

Article 20 concern specific topics that while normally outside of Congress' subject jurisdiction, are controlled by Congress. This includes the right to religious freedom, banning of polygamy, public and Indian lands, banning importation of intoxicating liquors onto Indian reserves until 1957, state officials required to speak, read and write English, among other things. These sections can only be repealed with the approval of Congress.

Oddities

Two sections in the Constitution are duplicated, having resulted from three constitutional amendments being approved in 1992 (Propositions 100, 101 and 107 all amending term limits with Proposition 107 creating a second version in both sections).

Amending the Constitution

Article 21 of the Arizona Constitution allows three methods of amending the Arizona Constitution:

Initiated constitutional amendments. These go on the Arizona ballot if an initiative petition is signed by qualified electors equalling 15% of the total number of votes cast for all candidates for governor in the most recent gubernatorial election.

The Arizona Secretary of State is required to publish a copy of the proposed amendment in a newspaper in each of Arizona's 15 counties for a period of at least ninety days before the election.

Proposed amendments must be voted on separately.

The state legislature is allowed to call a special election for the purposes of voting on proposed amendments. If no special election is called, amendments are voted on in the next statewide general election.

A constitutional convention may be called by a statewide vote of the people. In the absence of such a vote, the state legislature is not allowed to call a convention. Any proposed changes to the constitution that are reported out of a constitutional convention must be submitted to a statewide popular vote where, if approved by a majority of those voting, become part of the constitution.